DONKEY: Dentist Defends Joke About Care For Patients Who Don't Support Trump

Summary

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The Breakfast Club — “Donkey of the Day: Dentist Defends Joke About Care For Patients Who Don’t Support Trump”

Date: September 29, 2025
Hosts: Charlamagne tha God, DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious
Podcast: The Breakfast Club (iHeartPodcasts)

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Overview

In this episode’s “Donkey of the Day” segment, Charlamagne tha God tackles a viral controversy involving Dr. Harleen Grewal, a Santa Clarita, California dentist and outspoken Trump supporter. Dr. Grewal was seen in a resurfaced video joking about giving less care to patients who are not Trump supporters. Charlamagne analyzes the broader implications of the joke, discussing societal trust and professional responsibility, while posing larger questions about discrimination, cancel culture, and the responsibilities of those in positions of power.

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Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. Incident Background & The Viral Video (03:05–05:31)

• Subject: Dr. Harleen Grewal, a dentist, made a remark in a now-resurfaced video about providing different dental care to non-Trump supporters.
• The Joke:
  • Dr. Harleen Grewal (04:34):
    “So I have a secret hat I use sometimes. It says, make your smile great again. So I wear that when I work on my patients, so when they look horrified or complain, I quietly cut back on the laughing gas.”
• The video was originally posted two years ago but recently circulated widely, leading to backlash and patient losses.

2. Dr. Grewal’s Response & Investigation (05:00–05:19)

• Dr. Grewal claims the joke was made at a women’s Republican group event, intended for humor, and is part of a politically motivated campaign to “cancel” her.
• She emphasizes that an official dental board investigation found “nothing they could find that proved any of that.”
• Despite the investigation’s outcome, some patients reported to media that they are switching dentists.

3. Charlamagne’s Take: Trust, Professionalism, and Division (05:31–08:26)

• On Professional Conduct and Social Trust:
  • Charlamagne (05:31):
    “Why didn’t I laugh?... But my thing is, those shouldn’t be reasons not to support people, but it absolutely is if that person is on BS like Dr. Harleen Grewal is.”
  • He stresses the importance of trust in society—comparing reliance on dentists, pilots, baristas, and food service workers.
  • Expresses concern about eroding trust when professionals in critical fields (like healthcare) are seen as biased or discriminatory.
  • Charlamagne (06:43):
    "What happens when we can no longer trust each other?... The only thing that keeps our society civilized is trust."
• Questioning Priorities:
  • Charlamagne (07:23):
    “You love being MAGA more than you love being a dentist. Like, you spend all this time... just to lose it because you want to discriminate against people based on what political party they're in?”
• Warns about risking career and livelihood for transient political statements and the long-term consequences of losing public trust.

4. Consequences and Public Backlash (07:23–08:26)

• Notes that the dental board cleared Grewal, but damage is done as patients leave and trust erodes.
• Highlights that professional misconduct, even when “joking,” can have serious reputational and career consequences.
• Charlamagne (07:58):
  “Does MAGA have a support group for you when you lose your job? Is there a pantry you can go to to feed yourself when you lose your career over a temporary moment in politics?”

5. Donkey of the Day Award and Final Thoughts (08:26–08:54)

• Charlamagne officially dubs Dr. Grewal “Donkey of the Day,” playing the show’s signature sound bite.
• Doubles down on the seriousness of her comments, regardless of intent or timing, and critiques efforts to brush them off as harmless.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Golden Rule and Division:
  Charlamagne (03:52):
  “Do unto others as you would have them doing to you. Simple concept that I live by. Okay? Treat people the way you would like to be treated.”

• On Trust in Society:
  Charlamagne (06:43):
  “The only thing that keeps our society civilized is trust. ...For the most part, the batting average of trust is pretty good.”

• On Losing Professional Credibility Over Politics:
  Charlamagne (07:24):
  “Why would you even risk your whole livelihood over a red hat?”

• On the Joke and Accountability:
  Charlamagne (08:43):
  “She said that, you know, somebody is just out there trying to cancel her because the video is two years old. But ain’t nothing funny about that.”

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Donkey of the Day Introduction: 02:47
• Summary of Incident and Audio Clip: 03:05–05:31
• Charlamagne’s Analysis on Trust and Professionalism: 05:31–07:23
• Consequences, Licensure, and Risk: 07:23–08:26
• Donkey of the Day Sound Bite & Final Thoughts: 08:26–08:54

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Recap: Takeaways for Listeners

• Even “jokes” from professionals about discrimination can erode vital trust and damage careers, irrespective of intent or outcome.
• The episode examines not just political division, but also the fundamental need for trust between the public and service providers.
• Charlamagne delivers his critique with signature candor and humor, but underscores the seriousness with which such breaches of trust should be regarded.

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For listeners new to this controversy or the segment, this episode provides both the facts of the incident and a broader societal commentary, with strong opinions and memorable quotes throughout.

Transcript

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[Charlamagne tha God]

Bam. The hee haw again. It's time for Donkey of the Day. I'm not trying to be donkey today no more. They should be embarrassed by what they already did. I'm not making these people do these things called Donkey of the Day. And it really caught me off guard. Damn Charlamagne.

[Podcast Host]

Who got the donkey of the day today?

[Charlamagne tha God]

Well, Jeff's hilarious Donkey of the day for Monday, September 29th goes to a dentist in Sarah. No, Santa Clarita, California. Okay, Santa Clarita, California. Her name is Dr. Harleen Gruwell. Now, Dr. Harleen Gruel is an avid Trump supporter, and I have zero problem with that. I have zero problem with Trump supporters. The problem I have with Trump supporters is when they have problems with me. Okay? See, we live in a country where it should be possible for us to have disagreements. We should be able to be in different political parties, being different religions, and not want to hurt each other because of these differences. Okay? I have a level of respect for every single human on this planet. And that level of respect is based on this simple principle called the Golden Rule. Remember that? We learned it in elementary school. Do unto others as you would have them doing to you. Simple concept that I live by. Okay? Treat people the way you would like to be treated. That's it. I'm not going to do anything to a person I wouldn't want done to me. If we all live by this simple concept, the world would be a better place. But nope, we live in the divided States of America where people believe their differences give them the license to hurt those they don't agree with. And that's when it goes too far. And Dr. Holeen grew El is one of those individuals who believes because you share a different political view than she does, she can cause you pain. Let's go to ABC7 for the report, please.

[News Reporter]

A Santa Clarita dentist defending herself over a video that's now gone viral. The clip shows her joking about giving different care to patients who aren't Trump supporters.

[Dr. Harleen Grewal]

So I have a secret hat I use sometimes. It says, make your smile great again. So I wear that when I work on my patients, so when they look horrified or complain, I quietly cut back on the laughing gas.

[News Reporter]

Dr. Harleen Greywall's office posted the video two years ago. Recently, it began circulating on social media. Dr. Grewall said the controversy is being driven by Someone trying to, quote, cancel her.

[Dr. Harleen Grewal]

They asked me if I had said that, and I said yes. I said in one of my roasting speeches at a women's Republican group, why can't we just take a joke lightheartedly? But that was taken to cancel me. And the dental board did an investigation. They cleared it out and said there was nothing they could find that proved any of that.

[News Reporter]

Some of Dr. Grewal's patients emailed us saying they're changing dentists. Dr. Grewal says her patients are her family and. And that this is all a politically motivated smear campaign.

[Charlamagne tha God]

So it was a joke. Why didn't I laugh? I didn't. You know, like, listen, I missed the days when we didn't talk about religion and politics. But then there's a part of me that's glad we talk about religion and politics, because then you can choose to support someone or not support them. But my thing is, those shouldn't be reasons not to support people, but it absolutely is if that person is on BS like Dr. Harleen Gruel is. But you have to ask yourself, where does it end? Because the only thing that keeps our society civilized is trust. Okay? We all have these circles of trust with each other as humans, okay? You trust the pilot to get you to your destination safely. When you on a plane, you trust the bus driver to get you to your, you know, destination safely when you on the bus. You trust the person at Starbucks making your coffee not to poison you, okay? You trust the person making your food at Shake Shack to not skeet and your banana pudding shake, okay? It's all about trust, okay? Look at your mouth watering. So what happens when we can no longer trust each other? Now, I know you're saying to yourself, what are you talking about, Uncle Charlotte? Do you see the world we live in? Folks don't trust each other. Now that is not accurate. I know there's a lot of BS in this country, and bad things happen all the time, okay? There are people who actually absolutely violate this circle of trust that we have in this country every day. But for the most part, the batting average of trust is pretty good, okay? This thing could really go off the rails. And I know it often feels like it is, but for the most part, we stay on track. But for how long? Okay? When you have a dentist like Dr. Harleen Gruel not only exhibiting this kind of behavior, but proudly letting you know this is what she does, even in a joking manner, then I have to say we are reaching a real tipping point. Because this is what I don't understand. Dr. Harleen grew up.

[Co-host or Guest]

Grew.

[Charlamagne tha God]

Well, you love being Maga more than you love being a dentist. Like you spend all this time, countless hours in school, studying, having your own practice. You put all this work in just to lose it because you want to discriminate against people based on what political party they're in. Now, I'm not the highest grade of weed in the dispensary, but as far as I know, you can get your license taken away for being prejudiced. You can't get your license suspended or revoked because, you know, saying that you cut back on the laughing gas if someone isn't MAGA is absolutely, absolutely professional misconduct. And I know that they did an investigation and, you know, everything turned out fine for you, but why would you even risk your whole livelihood over a red hat? Okay? Even if you don't lose your license, you losing customers, okay? Because people just simply don't trust you. Okay? Does MAGA have a support group for you when you lose your job? Is there a pantry you can go to to feed yourself when you lose your career over a temporary moment in politics? You want to be a MAGA influencer that bad? Please give Dr. Harleen Gruel the sweet sounds of the Hamiltones.

[AT&T Advertiser]

Oh, now you are the donkey of the day. You are the donkey of the day.

[Charlamagne tha God]

I get it. She said that, you know, somebody is just out there trying to cancel her because the video is two years old.

[AT&T Advertiser]

But ain't nothing funny about that.

[Charlamagne tha God]

Those were your words. That's right. You know, those are your words.

[AT&T Advertiser]

All right, well, thank you for that donkey today. Now, if you're up and about and you're on your streaming service, you can check us out on Twitch. Breakfast Club am on Twitch. We'll be chatting it up with you guys if you want to hop on right now. And everybody else, Michael Blackson will be joining us. When we come back, comedian Michael Blackson. So don't go anywhere. It's the Breakfast Club. Good morning.

[Co-host or Guest]

The Breakfast Club.

[Charlamagne tha God]

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